RWD 19xx-1984 DeVille and Fleetwood,1985-1996 Fleetwood and Brougham Forum Discussion, 94 thru 96. What to buy? in Past Cadillac Vehicle Discussion; Well guys I am back here on the board, I used to have a 91 with a 305 which was ...

94 thru 96. What to buy?

Well guys I am back here on the board, I used to have a 91 with a 305 which was absolutely gorgeous, I got compliments every time I took friends out in it but I thought I would try something different this time and wanted LT1 powered D body. My question to you guys would be that would be there be a particular model that would be make or break for this body style? ( ie. would it bother you to have a 94 with the smaller windows or does OBD 1 mean something over OBD two for 96? There a lot of good attractive prices out there on these models from what I'm finding but am torn over what I might choose ( color notwithstanding because the color does make a difference to me).
Lastly, would buying a V4P equipped model be worth buying over the lesser Broughams ? ). I wonder if that option package makes it tremendously more Valuable to the average driver in the way it handles and accelerates versus the better gas mileage of the regular one.

I appreciate all your thoughts.
I'm located in Colorado Springs song going to have to travel to get any of the ones that I want regardless seems.

Not sure about the car choices but as far as ODBI verses ODBll, ODBII came out on some mid 1995 but really didn't get started till 1996 I belive it was a mandate by the feds to get car testing and troubleshooting easier too perform and standardize. P codes the stands for power train witch is usually engine related there are standard code as well specific code for different making and models and there's also other type of codes not mentioned in here but that's the basic difference with me ODBII and ODBI.

Re: 94 thru 96. What to buy?

A lot of it is personal preference really. Some prefer the "small mirror" 94's over the "big mirror" 95/6 models. I happen to prefer the latter myself. OBD2 (96 only) can be a benefit if you still have emissions testing to deal with.

The V4P can be a little harder to find but really doesn't give you anything unless you want the towing capability which really is more about engine and trans cooling than anything else though you do get higher gears too.

The one bonus the 96's have in, my opinion, is the updated radio unit. Everything is in the dash, where prior years have a big bundle of cables that run to a module in the trunk. Mainly an issue/expense if you're putting in an aftermarket radio.

Re: 94 thru 96. What to buy?

I have a 1995 Fleetwood Brougham and can't think of too many differences, but I love the car overall. The side-view mirrors are smaller on 1994 and they aren't as nice to use, but they also don't have the Dumbo-ear effect, either. What I mean by that is, like with most new cars, when you are behind the car you can see the mirrors sticking off like big ears on a face and they are more easily hit and knocked-off by other cars. The bigger 95 and 96 mirrors are better for visibility, but I must say I like the mirrors on those older Fleetwoods where they don't stick out beyond the body. The 95 and 96 mirrors do fold toward the back of the car, so if you bump a car they will collapse, but if a car going forward hits you parked, they won't. If I park on a narrow street I will fold them in to be safe since, if hit, they will not collapse forward. My older Fleetwoods don't have that issue.

There is the OBD I and II difference. Being OBDI and pre-1996 gets you out of some tests and regulations depending on where you live. Not only is there the OBD I and II thing, but some of the other devices on the 1996 are unique, like the radio/tape/CD player. The only thing I usually don't keep stock on my cars are the radios, but all of the mid-90's Fleetwoods have there own unique harness and set up not shared with other cars (not even other Cadillacs) which makes it harder to put in aftermarket stereo equipment. I really wanted a CD player in my 95 when I got it, but it didn't have one. I could find no one who had wire harness adapters for the car. I was then just going to hard-wire in an aftermarket control head, but adapters for the device to fit nicely into the instrument panel were also not to be found. I have a 76 Fleetwood that I hard-wired and modified myself to fit everything handsomely, but I decided the best thing for the 95 was to get a Cadillac CD player (which was obviously not an option on the 76). Doing all of this made me notice at a future time that the radio in the 1996 (and I think the climate control) were different, and thus must be unique to that one model and year since they were discontinued after that. This would make these items even harder to find if they needed replacement than their 93-95 counterparts.

95 and 96 have a button to disable the traction control and I believe 94 doesn't, which is bad if you need to spin the wheels. I have rarely used it, but twice in the last decade I have and would have been screwed without the ability to disable it. 95 and 96 also have a quieter cam set up that is supposed to make the engine run quieter. I've never listened to the engine of a 94 vs. a 95, but in theory the cam should run more quietly according to GM. 95 also got a more durable torque converter clutch over 94.

As far as ride goes, my 95 is the best riding car I have ever driven in my life, and I've driven a lot of cars. I do not have the towing package, nor would I want it if it meant making my ride less smooth and soft. My 95 has the FE1 soft ride, and it is so great because it is so soft, but isn't overly boaty. It holds steady on the road, yet eats up the bumps. If you're into that nice ride (if not, why have a big RWD Cadillac?), I'd avoid the towing package with stiffer suspension. The LT1 has more than enough power and torque as it is, so why eat up more gas on the highway and give away that smooth ride just to get a tiny bit more off the line?

All-in-all, I'd go 95 with no tow package (unless you need it), but not just because that is what I have. I just happen to get a 95 since I would have taken any 94-96 back when I was looking, but in retrospect with what I know now, I'm glad that's the one happened to get.

Re: 94 thru 96. What to buy?

Originally Posted by Lord Fleetwood

95 and 96 have a button to disable the traction control and I believe 94 doesn't, which is bad if you need to spin the wheels. I have rarely used it, but twice in the last decade I have and would have been screwed without the ability to disable it.

Just as a clarification, both my 94's have the traction control disable button. Saved my butt on numerous occasions during our once-a-year massive snow dump on my uphill commute - with TCS off, I was plowing past cars and trucks that couldn't make it up the hill. Had I left TCS on, the system would have brought the car to a standstill in a hurry (and it did the first time I drove it in the snow)

Re: 94 thru 96. What to buy?

94s also come with 3 way lumbar support whereas 96s only 1 , must be for cost saving
VP4 Packages come with mechanical fan whereas non VP4 cars come with electrical fans . I also reckon VP4 supports or come with stiffer suspension setting I forgot which was which ,FE1 or FE2

Re: 94 thru 96. What to buy?

Similar to what Jason said, I would look for condition and maintenance first. Small mirrors, big mirrors or color, are pretty far down on my list. Other than minor differences 94's, 95's and 96's are all the same car. Two years ago I bought a 96 Fleetwood, 65K, and no vinyl roof. If it was a 94, I still would have bought it.

Re: 94 thru 96. What to buy?

I haven't decided yet I would modify it or not. I definitely have a hot rod or mentality within me, knowing that a nice computer chip/reflash too could improve things even more (I owned in 1994 Firebird Firehawk in the past with an LT1 and modified it). I had just read what a few owners said about the V4 P package and they loved how well it handled and accelerated. Deep down I know that I will probably drive it for gas mileage reasons on the highway anyway though.

Thanks for you guys for chiming i,n yes I knew what some of the differences were of the years, I just wanted to know what you would choose

----------

96fleetwood, I would like to get up to 300 but Corvette without making it sound like a muscle car so I know you could do it work or something close to that to get the power possibly, it's been so long I had to research what's available out there now for this engine. I come from owning, previously, a 99 BMW 750il V12 322 hp weighing the same as the Caddy, I would sure like to have that level of power if possible

Re: 94 thru 96. What to buy?

Just make sure you buy one from down south. These cars can look pristine on the paintwork/sheetmetal, but be an utter pig underneath. I got burned buying a 50,000 mile car from Michigan that matched that description. Looked PRISTINE inside and out, put it on a lift, the frame was downright scary looking where the steering box bolted to the frame. I could hit that section of the frame with a screwdriver and pull off huge chunks of paper thin rusty scale.

As far as color, I'm pretty damn picky. Black, red, burgandy, navy blue, if it isn't a dark color I will pass. The dark colors make the chrome really pop.

Also, don't expect the bigger 94-96 Fleetwoods to drive/handle as nice as your 91 Brougham. I had a 91 Brougham as well as a 95 Fleetwood. The 95 felt a lot heavier, rolled a lot more in the turns, and just didn't give me the sort of confidence like my old 91 had in the turns. The 95 floated a little bit nicer, but it wasn't worth the handling trade off. If you hustled/pushed that 91, you could nail the apex every time, push it hard enough and brake late enough on a wet road, you could have all kinds of sideways fun and still manage to catch it. I never felt brave enough in the 95 to push it that hard on a public road, it just felt like it would terminally push you into the opposite ditch.